Pig



Patented july l5, 1924.

PATENT oEFlcE.

HENRY C. ZENKE, OIE RICI-IMND HILL, NEW YORK.

PIG..

Application filed October 11, 1922. Serial No. 593,737.

6 of New York, have invented an Improvement in Pigs, of which thefollowing is a specification. v

My present invention relates to the supply of metal to line castingmachines, and particularly to a pig of a new form which is designed tobe used in automatic feeding devices.

Several of these are on the market and their operation depends to agreat extentupon the height of metal in the melting pot of the machineto which it is supplied, a float in which controls the action of theautomatic feeders. The most satisfactory feeders use pigs ofconsiderable size and weight, twenty-five pounds ormore, and the commonform of such devices is satisfactory for ordinary operation; but I havefound that with unusually rapid operators, or, in some cases, with classof matter which requires a large amount of metal, as where the typefaces are very large, the ordinary pig does not melt rapidly enough andthe metal in the melting pot becomes chilled and does not work well. Itis the object of the present invention to obviate thisy difficulty,which I do by a` change in the shape of the pig, presently to bedescribed.

The accompanying drawings show one of the pigs of my invention,

Figure 1 being a perspective of the pig which I have devised;

Figure 2 an alternative construction; and

Figure. 3 being an end elevation of a pig of the ordinary character.

Pigs of the ordinary character, as illustratedby Figure 3, have so largea body of metalfcontained in them that they do not melt fast enough whendipped in the hot metal of the pot. 'I therefore arrange to give them anextended heat absorbing surface by molding, or otherwise forming them,with ribs between which grooves extend,

preferably longitudinal] of the pig, though not necessarily so. Suc aform of pig is shown in Figure 1 in which A is the pig, A1 is thelongitudinal groove formed on the narrower surface thereof; A2 is acutaway portion which facilitates the insertion of the pig into thefeeding device. A4, A4 are ribs between which the groove A1 is located.In this form of the improved pig, there is only one groove.

Figure 2 shows another form of pig which in general is like the pig inFigure 1, but is provided with additional grooves A3, A3. This pig isadapted to the most rapid work on large type demanding extraordinarysupply of metal and the surface is even more extended than that shown inFigure 1, so that it melts with considerably increased rapidity.

It is obvious that it is not important by what method the pig may beformed. That formed in Figure 2, for example, might be cast in a flatsheet and then run between corrugatin rollers; but whe-ther cast orotherwise ormed, it would be within my invention.

In the claims, I have used the phrase a number of grooves and I meanthereby one or more, as may be considered desirable, the object being toprovide a pig of type metal with an extended heat absorbing surfaceformed by the grooves and ribs so that it will melt with sufficientrapidity to supply the machine under all circumstances.

I claim:

1. A pig of metal for use in a line-casting machine, having an extendedheat-ab sorbing surface formed by a number of I grooves in the metal.

2. A pig of type-metal having a number of longitudinal grooves formingan extended heat-absorbing surface.

3. A pig of type-metal having ribs on which the pig may slide in afeeder, and one or more intermediate grooves between the ribs, formingan extended heat-absorbing surface.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification this9th day of October, 1922.

HENRY C. ZENKE.

